Get Universal Audio’s 610 tube channel strips for free — DSP or native

For a limited time, you can grab UA’s 610-A and 610-B models for free, emulating tube amps, transformers, and EQ circuitry in software form. That includes both the UAD Native version you can run anywhere, plus the DSP version that integrates with their Apollo hardware. Here are some details.

Baby Audio’s Tekno drum machine gets a sequencer and iOS AUv3 version

Tekno from Baby Audio was easily one of my favorite plug-ins of last year — it’s a rich, “bend”-able, brutal box with the feeling of hardware drum synthesis. And now it gets a step sequencer, plus a ton of tweaks you might have missed in the first release. And one more thing: iOS users, there’s a mobile version with AUv3 version.

Peter Kirn - January 8, 2026

A free emulator of Roland JP-8000 and the love of supersaws and trance

Digital preservation is the new challenge for synths, just as it is in areas like games. And the Roland JP-8000 got a big leg up with a free and open source release from The Usual Suspects available this month, the JE8086. It’s one of several recent emulations, so let’s talk about why the 1998 synth […]

Peter Kirn - December 30, 2025

The best holiday, end-of-year deals on software and gear you can still get

Peter Kirn - December 29, 2025

Boxing Day: get those xmas freebies and be serenaded by an Atari ST

Peter Kirn - December 26, 2025

Tweakbench plug-ins return after 20 years, from NES to ambient

Peter Kirn - December 18, 2025

Sinevibes Skew, 3-playhead reverse delay, improved and now free

Peter Kirn - December 17, 2025

Rage with the machine: Pigments 7 with new filters, new FX, sound features

Peter Kirn - December 16, 2025

Alien resurrection: Absynth 6 delivers a powerful update to a futuristic classic

Peter Kirn - December 9, 2025

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